


The Complaint

by hollyharley



Category: Brooklyn Nine-Nine (TV)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, CPTSD, CSA, Friendship, Gen, Happy Ending, Healing, Implied/Referenced Sexual Harassment, NCCSA, Past Abuse, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, wholesome jake
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-24
Updated: 2020-08-24
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:40:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,208
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25855264
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hollyharley/pseuds/hollyharley
Summary: Gina receives a sexual harassment complaint.
Relationships: Gina Linetti & Jake Peralta
Comments: 2
Kudos: 50





	The Complaint

**Author's Note:**

> Note You May Skip If You'd Like   
> Sexual violence is about power. I wanted to understand why Gina wanted this power, and why she chose Terry to harass. Why does she act the way she does? Of course, I doubt the writers thought this much into it. But... because she has some positive moments, I decided there was something more to it than just her being a sleazeball.
> 
> This does **not** mean I think all victims of sexual violence become abusers or harassers themselves.  This also does **not** mean I think Gina's behavior, or that of any woman who assaults or harasses someone, is acceptable.  But I know that when you're abused, your ideas of love and violence are distorted.  
> \----- end of my ted talk
> 
> Thank you for reading.
> 
> * * *
> 
>  _TW: referenced sexual harassment, past child sexual abuse/NCCSA (offline), referenced alcoholism (of Gina's dad), cursing, Kanye/North West mention, Instagram mention_  
>  If you have a specific trigger, feel free to ask in the comments (anon is available) or message/ask me on tumblr (hollypurcellhurts).

Gina was playing Kwazy Cupcakes when the phone rang.

She was tempted to ignore it. She was in the middle of a game, after all. But when she glanced at the phone, she saw it was Captain Holt, so she answered. "Queen of the Universe and your assistant speaking."

"Gina, come into my office."

The disconnect tone buzzed in her ear.

Gina rolled her eyes for two reasons. 1) He could have at least said please. 2) This meant work. Work. She was only here to pay her bills and to make fun of Amy. Still, she got up, smartphone still in her hand, and walked into the office. 

Holt looked at her gravely. Or perhaps he was ecstatic. She could never tell.

"Yes, Captain?"

"Close the door and the blinds, please."

At least he said please. Gina briefly wondered if the Captain had spilled food on himself again. Except it wasn't even ten o'clock yet; there was no way Holt had eaten. Maybe he spilled coffee over himself. As she closed the blinds, her gaze flickered out into the bullpen. Jake was looking directly at her with a questioning look. She tilted her head and gave a tiny shrug, like _Bitch_ _, I don't know either_ _. GTG._

She turned back to Holt. "Yes?"

"Sit down, Gina." 

Closed door. Closed blind. Now her sitting down? Something serious was happening. "Did someone die?" she exclaimed. She had heard nothing from any other assistants. 

"No one died." He paused. Oh, God. She hoped no one was getting fired. "I received a sexual harassment complaint." 

Gina leaned back in her chair and pumped her fist in the air. "Yes! _Please_ tell me Hitchcock is getting fired, Captain! I can smell his feet from my desk. He's been taking his shirt off and saying gross shit for _years_ now!"

Holt rubbed his temple and let out a long sigh. Confused emoji. She swore she heard him mutter something about _the writers,_ but that didn't make sense. He was taking too long to tell her what was up, and Gina was starting to get anxious. Holt seemed like he was at a loss for words. He was never at a loss for words.

"Gina, the sexual harassment complaint was about you."

_What?_

"You have done good things for this precinct, and despite your... rather eccentric personality, I have allowed this to go on because you bring a fresh perspective. It is one that I value. However, I cannot allow for anyone in this precinct- no matter their characteristics- to be harassed without bringing forth consequences."

_Terry._

"There is documentation dating back... years."

Gina stayed silent. Rare for her. _Fuck._

"I am going to put you on leave for the rest of the week, until I figure out what to do. I do not want to fire you, but I have to put the complainant first."

Gina looked directly into Holt's eyes. "Terry."

"I am not allowed to tell you who filed the complaint." She said nothing. She just stared at the little rainbow flags in the pencil cup. She wondered what it was like to live your truth instead of pretending to.

Holt interrupted her thoughts. "I will contact you in a few days, Gina. You are dismissed."

She shook her head and stood. "I know it was Terry." She opened the blinds and the door then turned back to Holt. "He had every right to complain."

He said nothing. She grabbed her purse from her desk and turned off the desktop computer. She kept her head down as walked across the bullpen. Her behavior was incredibly un-Gina like. As she waited for the elevator, she heard Jake. "Gina?"

She ignored him.

* * *

Gina didn't know where her dad was. ~~She wanted to know.~~ She did _not_ want to know. 

She tried to go to Shaw's bar, but it was closed. It was automatic for her to go there after a shit work day. Cursing at herself for not paying attention _,_ she took the train home. It was now 11 AM. Was it really too early to have a drink? It's 5 o'clock somewhere, right?

She decided: yes, it was to early. It wasn't 5'clock in Brooklyn. She didn't want to become a drunk like her father. Alcohol had been air for him. 24/7. She realized she was still thinking about him and threw her bag across her apartment in anger. She quickly ran to it and picked it up gingerly. Its chain had scratched the front. _Shit, Gina. WTF is wrong w you?_ This was her best knock-off Fendi. She really wasn't thinking straight.

Who would, when thinking about someone like her dad? Nauseated Face Emoji. 

She hung her purse on the hook and sat on the couch. Normally, when she remembered her father, she danced. She wasn't a ballerina or anything, but it reminded herself that her body was hers and she controlled it. But right now, she didn't want to dance. She hated this body. Scratch that. She hated herself.

What she had she been doing to Terry? 

Her comments. Touching him. Wanting _pictures_ of him? _It's called fucking harassment, Gina._ Towards Terry. Lovely, supportive, muscular-teddy-bear-badass Terry. Towards the squad Dad. The one who held the entire team up alone until Holt showed up. The one who has always wanted to help her- to help everyone.

She remembered when Jake first got her the job. She was looking forward to it. She was barely making enough to cover rent at her hell job at the mall; on top of that, the mall was full of men who would make comments, men she couldn't say shit to if she wanted to keep her job. When she started at the 99, her best friend was there, and he had a _gun._ No one could mess with her. It was an easy job, and the people were nice enough. She could mess around, play on her phone, make some calls, and go home. 

But when she met Terry, she felt afraid. If he wanted to, he could pick her up and throw her across the bullpen. No, the exact words she had thought were: _He could pick you up, take you somewhere, and do whatever he wanted. You can't stop him, Regina._ Her father, whispering to her, so many years later.

She had spent her entire life trying to get away from her dad. She had spent every moment possible at Nana's place. She ate up the warmth and safety there, and too quickly, she would have to go home to _him_. When her mother came home early from that night out with friends, it ended. 

That night, Darlene kicked her husband out. He told her she was overreacting. So what if Regina was sitting naked on the couch? So what if he'd had his hand down his underwear, pants discarded on the floor, when his wife walked in? So what if Gina was shaking with fear? Carl told his wife that he never touched their daughter.

She yelled back: "You raped her mind!" Gina didn't agree though. It wasn't a big deal. It couldn't be a big deal, right?

The next morning, Darlene took her daughter to change her last name to _Linetti_. Gina was 12. Her father was gone, but he still lived in her mind, whispering things, making her afraid. It only got worse when Darlene couldn't find evidence anywhere; he wasn't one to take pictures. By the time the police got to him, he denied everything, saying Darlene was accusing him because she wanted full custody of their daughter. The cops believed him. There was no trauma a rape kit would find, and no support from the justice system. Her father walked, a free man.

When she was 13, Gina started to steal. Jewelry. Utensils. Office supplies. You name it, she stole it. She got caught and was put into an at-risk teen program, but some stupid program couldn't make her feel any less horrible. What did, though, was stealing. It would make her feel control. She was good at it. Great at it. Only got caught when she was still getting the hang of it. She stole every day, every week. From the mall, from the bodega, from her neighbor. 

When she started dancing, she started to steal less. But it was always there. Like her father was.

_Regina, be a good girl for me._

She hated feeling like a victim. Helpless. As time passed, stealing gave her less release than she needed. Dancing still wasn't enough. So she started walking on clouds. She became an spirit on earth; a wolf instead of a sheep. Not Regina the victim, but Gina the God. By the time she was at senior prom, she saw most people as beneath her. She loved a few: her mom, Jake. She would sweep Nana's grave every month. But everyone else was fair game. Maybe she was cruel. Maybe being a bully was bad. But her father could not take her childhood if she was beyond humanity itself. She would fly away from him. 

Her mother tried to take her to a therapist after the teen program stint, but the psychologist wanted to know about what had happened, so Gina refused to go back. Psychologists sucked, anyways. They weren't smart at all. Why would she be affected by something that was over? She didn't want to think about the past. 

Gina shook her head. _No more thinking about that stupid fucker, Gina!_ She pulled out her phone to play a mindless game, and her screen flickered. She had missed soooo many messages and notifications. Normally she thought they were all important, except for today, she ignored them- all but one.

 **Jake Peralta 🚔** _20m_  
What happened?? Are you OK?

When she had met Terry, she didn't want to become a victim. Her brain had convinced her he was dangerous, and she decided to protect herself.

When her father didn't stop, she began to act how he wanted. She wouldn't cry. She wouldn't beg for him to stop. She brought him beer and helped him with his belt and posed in the ways she knew he liked because _she_ wanted to be in control. This protected her. So when Terry came along, she went back to her roots and added the things she had learned along the way. No one would take advantage of Gina Linetti again. She was in control. But in all of this, she forgot the person she was hurting. This made her just like her father- an sexual predator. 

Gina felt shame, and her hands itched to steal, steal, steal. But stealing meant leaving her apartment, and she didn't want to go out into the world ever again. She decided, if she was already like her dad, she might as well have a drink too.

_One shot, two shots, three. I hate you, Regina Lin-e-e-tti._

* * *

Funny enough, it was 5 o'clock when she got a call. 

When Jake's name popped up on the screen, she got pretty ticked off. She had better things to do than talk to him. He would just want to ask about her leaving work. She had better things to do than talk about that. What she wanted to do right now was continue stalking celebrities on Instagram, so she slammed her thumb down on the red reject button and continued to scroll through Kanye's profile. She tried to ignore the memories of her father, but it wasn't working.

_Take those off._

_Open, Sweetheart._

_Good girl._

Her phone chimed. She flinched.

 **Jake Peralta 🚔** _Now_  
Are you home?

She texted back, fingers still far more nimble than a normal texter, no matter her alcohol level. _Why do you want 2 know, Mr. Detective?_

He answered immediately. _Bc I'm worried abt you?_

Stupid fucking, Jake, always acting like a kid, always someone Gina had to protect. Well, she was tired of it. She didn't want to be around him. She didn't want to have to spell out everything for him. And maybe she didn't want him to _fucking know_. It wasn't his business.

She texted, _Leave me tf alone Jake._

She went back to Kanye's page. The next photo was of his daughter, North West. She was already angry, and this added fuel to the fire. What kind of idiot names their kid _North West_? Poor North West. She would probably be bullied for that name, no matter how famous and rich her father was. What the fuck was in the North West anyways? Fucking Oregon? Did he seriously name his kid after fucking Oregon?

Gina took another shot and started a Instagram Live.

"Heeeey, G-Hive! It's your queen here. I want to talk about Kanye..."

* * *

Forty two minutes later, there was a knock on the door. Gina opened it and rolled her eyes for her audience to see. "It's just Mr. Jake Peralta, the biggest idiot detective in New York City."

"Gina, can we talk?"

She pointed her phone at Jake. "Look, everyone. Say hi, Jake!"

Jake swung forward and grabbed her phone

"Jake!" she yelled. She tried to get her iPhone back, but Jake was taller than her and holding it towards the ceiling. "WHAT THE FUCK, BITCH?"

She tried to push him. "ARE YOU FUCKING STUPID OR SOMETHING? I TOLD YOU TO FUCK OFF!" Jake was stronger than her, so she couldn't do much beyond yelling. He didn't respond to that, though. He simply stepped forward and closed the door shut. She gave him the stink eye as he locked her door. He turned off her live feed and put her phone in his pocket. Gina seethed.

"Gina," he held up his hands, as if surrendering. Fucking stupid. "Please don't be mad. I just..." Jake looked conflicted. Confused. 

She crossed her arms. She wouldn't declare defeat and ask for her phone. "What do you want?"

Jake sighed. "I just wanted to talk to you. I think a lot's going on."

Alcohol and anger flooded her bloodstream, making the artery in her neck pulse. "I _told you_ to..." Where was she going with this? This day, it was all turning her brain into mush.

_Regina, you're such a good girl._

"Just give me my fucking phone and leave!"

Jake didn't move. "I watched your feed on the way here, G."

"So?"

"Your whole rant about dads and men? It was... worrying. I'm worried."

"I'm fine."

Jake stepped into the apartment and stopped at the sight of the bottle of vodka on her table, over half empty, and its stopper besides it. "How much have you had to drink?"

She seethed at the accusation. A memory burst in front of her. _Darlene smashing empty beer bottles into the trash can, yelling: "How much do you have to drink every damn night? You need help, Carl!"_

"I said I was _fine._ "

Jake sighed and sat on the couch. "Please, G. If you don't want to talk, let me at least be here for you."

"You sound like a fucking therapist." She glared down at him.

He was silent for a second, contemplating something. "I know about the complaint."

She didn't answer. She didn't know what to say. 

"The way you were talking on the feed. Saying all men can be dangerous? Like, do you really think that? Do you think that about me?"

Oh, of course. Jake makes this about him too. "LEAVE!" she yelled. He ignored her.

"I know you didn't mean to hurt Terry, Gina. It really wasn't cool, but maybe you can talk to the captain and stop making jokes and-"

She laughed. It was bitter and loud. She sat on a stool and turned to Jake, smirking. "You think I didn't mean to hurt him?"

She chuckled at his shocked face. There she was. Gina. Gina in control. "Of course I meant to hurt him. Some daddy's not gonna hurt me again."

She tried to understand why Jake suddenly had a sickened look on his face, but her mush brain decided to stop working. Thoughts were sluggish and fast at the same time and all she could really think clearly was something she wasn't even sure her dad ever said: _Regina, open your legs for me, Baby._

"Hurt you again?" Jake stood and stepped closer to her.

Fuck. 

"Gina?"

"I don't want to talk about it. They divorced. I'm over it."

Jake's eyes widened, and this time, she remembered what she said that was so revealing. It bounced in her brain. _Divorced. Divorced. Divorced._

"I mean-"

"Your dad hurt you?"

Gina got up from the chair and yelled into his face. "FUCK OFF!"

She walked angrily from him across the apartment, got to the door, and then realized she had no where to go. She slumped against the door. She was so... tired.

"I'm tired, Jake. Can you just leave?" She could hear the desperation leaking into her voice, but she couldn't help it. The anger was gone. Her fight was gone. All that was left was shame, disgust, alcohol, and her father's voice.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry I just burst in here. Are you tired?"

"Obviously."

_Regina. Open your legs._

Footsteps. He touched her hand. It made Gina flinch, but she pretended like it didn't, and luckily, so did Jake. "Come on."

She let her friend guide her to her couch, where she promptly lay down. She closed her eyes. Jake pulled a blanket over her. Her head was lifted to place a pillow under it. She murmured, "Thanks, Girl."

"No problem, Gina."

She quickly drifted off to sleep. The last thing she thought was, _I need to tell Terry I'm sorry._

* * *

Someone was screaming. 

"Gina! Gina, wake up!"

She was scared. She was scared. She was scared. She could hear a woman screaming. Who was that?

"Gina! Gina! Gina, are you okay?"

She blinked. She was curled up on the couch, muscles tense. The screaming stopped. She looked at Jake standing in front of her, his phone's light shining in her face. Her throat burned. She realized the screaming had come from her.

"I'm fine."

She looked for her phone to check the time. She couldn't find it and remembered Jake had taken it from her. He must've realized this too because he fished it out of his pocket. It was 1 AM.

She looked up at him. The motion made her head hurt. Her temple was throbbing, and she was thirsty. "Why are you still here?"

He shrugged. "You seemed like you needed a friend. I kinda slept on your bed, by the way."

"Remember when we would fall asleep on Nana's couch while watching Indiana Jones?" She smiled. A nice memory, finally.

Jake laughed and sat besides her. "Yeah. Those were great days." His gaze fell to the floor, and his face grew somber. She knew he was thinking about what else happened during those "great days."

"I'm sorry I woke you up." She felt her cheeks grow warm with embarrassment. Gina Linetti showing weakness? She wasn't used to it. "That hasn't happened in awhile." She could feel the remnants of the night terror in her body. Her shoulders refused to relax. Her jaw was tight. She felt like she was suffocating.

"It's not your fault," he answered. 

But it was, wasn't it? She never told anyone. She did what he told her to. _You were 12,_ said one part of her. _So?_ replied the other.

She could tell Jake was trying to figure out what to say. "I know what you're thinking, Jake. He never touched me. It's fine."

"I'm so sorry, Gina."

She looked at the shot glass on the table. "I told you, he barely did anything. It's fine."

Jake didn't say anything else, but he grabbed hold of her hand and squeezed lightly. His eyebrows were furrowed. His eyes were kind. God, Jake was such a good friend. His kindness was unconditional. It made her want to explain.

"He'd get off t-to me or whatever... He just liked feeling in control. I could tell by how he'd look at me when my mom came back home. He'd fucking wink. I don't even think he was a pedo."

Silence. But Jake wasn't throwing up or moving away or anything. He was here.

"I don't trust anyone," Gina whispered. "I didn't trust Terry no matter how much he proved himself. See where it got me. I'm like Hitchcock" She made a face. "Ugh! I'm like Hitchcock!"

Jake gently bumped her shoulder. "Okay, that comparison is not fair. Your feet don't smell as bad as Hitchcock's, and you never walk around half naked." 

"I've been harassing Terry."

Jake looked at her wall. "I know. I snuck into Holt's office while he was in the bathroom to figure out why you left, and I saw the complaint. I think we're all kind of to blame. The Sarge just always seems in control. It seemed okay. "

She put her head in her hands. "It wasn't okay."

"Yeah."

"You think Holt will fire me? This is like the best job I could have. You're there. Rosa's like the coolest motherfucker I've ever met. I think I'd even miss Boyle."

Jake shrugged. "I don't know what he's going to do." He paused. "Maybe you just need to do your best."

She didn't get to choose if she'd be fired. There had to be consequences, after all, and that was a good thing. She told Jake that she wanted to make it up to Terry (or at least try), and he helped her make a plan. Then she made him go to bed because he was about to fall asleep right there, sitting on the couch. It was 2AM and she was hungover, but she wouldn't sleep. She needed to do this. 

She found a piece of paper and began to write.

* * *

Gina didn't make a show of it. She didn't have her phone out. She didn't make fun of Boyle's brunch (but seriously, WTH was that man eating?). She just swiftly walked through the bullpen and knocked on the captain's open door.

His glanced up at her.

"Gina, right on time." She had requested this meeting. "Please, sit down."

She closed the door and the blinds and sat. The captain leaned forward and rested his clasped hands on his desk. "You said you have something to show me?"

Gina showed him the letter she had written this morning. He read it. It wasn't long; she had wanted to get to the point. Holt approved of the letter, and though he pointed out several grammatical errors, he said he would give it to Terry. They were meeting up today to discuss her employment. 

"That doesn't mean he's the complainant," Holt added.

He told her he would contact her, but he doubted she would lose her job. He had given some officers training for harassment similar. It wasn't something people got locked up for. This was a relief, yet Gina didn't want it to be that simple.

"Don't go easy on me, Captain. And Terry needs to be a part of this- whatever the consequence is. He's gonna need to be more than the victim, or it's going to suck between us. For him." They said their goodbyes. Gina stood, chin up, and went home.

* * *

Later that day, Gina got a text from Terry. _Thanks for the letter. I appreciate it._

Soon after, she got a call from Holt. She would return to work, and she would have to do 20 hours of online sexual harassment training and had to plan a in-person sexual harassment training event for all of the officers. It was more than she would have been given if she hadn't said anything. She was glad, though. Gina believed in karma, even if you had to push it in the right direction sometimes.

Realizing what she had been doing made Gina feel like a monster. But she wasn't a monster. She wasn't a God, either. She was just Gina. As Jake said, all she could do now was her best. 

So Gina did just that. She would never make comments to Terry or about Terry again. It was out of the question. If she felt threatened, she would have to deal with it. She would talk to him. Or talk to Jake. Or talk to a therapist because she was a damn adult, and it was about time she took care of herself. And yes, she would still slack off on her work. She would spend too much time on her phone.

But she wouldn't hurt anyone.

That's what being in control really is.

\--------

_Dear Terry,_

_The first time I met you you scared me._

_I could go into my history, but I don't want to make excuses. There is no excuse._

_I think if you weren't a black man, this would be a different story. I don't know if everyone would laugh or go along with it if you were white. Or weaker. And I've known this. I knew the things I said made you uncomfortable. Me having control meant you had to suffer._

_I know saying sorry can't change the past, but I'm sorry._ _I'm sorry, Terry. It won't happen again._

_♡ Gina Linetti_

\--------

**Author's Note:**

> Maybe analyzing Gina's behavior was dumb, but I did it. Eek. basically vent for me, and the end was difficult to write bc Gina never apologizes in the show. but... it's done!!
> 
> I think I want to write something about Terry and how he feels about Gina's harassment too. Maybe I'll do that soon?
> 
> Thank you for reading!!! pls let me know anything you would like in the comments :) comments make me cry happy tears  
> \-------------------------------------  
> If you have experienced sexual violence, harassment, or any type of CSA, please know you are not alone. I believe you. I'm so sorry it happened to you. You did not deserve it, no matter what you did. Consent cannot be coerced or given by a minor.
> 
> For information and support, please visit RAINN.org.  
> For more information on non-contact child sexual abuse (NCCSA), online child sex abuse, and CSA in general, consider reading [this article](https://www.harleytherapy.co.uk/counselling/what-is-child-sexual-abuse-why-your-definition-might-need-updating.htm) ("What is Child Sexual Abuse?" by Harley Therapy- Counselling Blog)


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